


Street Cleaning Day: Aftermath

by faithfulDiscord



Category: Welcome to Night Vale
Genre: Gen, Hugs, I think you can tell, I'm not caught up, M/M, Panic Attacks, Street Cleaning Day, Worry, but yeah, episode 15, getting together?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-19
Updated: 2019-04-19
Packaged: 2020-01-16 14:53:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 684
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18523801
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/faithfulDiscord/pseuds/faithfulDiscord
Summary: And then a gradual movement towards Mission Grove Park. No orders or even suggestions given, and yet we all file to that central meeting place, put our arms around each other, grip tight, and then grip tighter.Some of us are not here.





	Street Cleaning Day: Aftermath

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! So I did this because apparently I can't just casually be in a fandom anymore. I hope you like it!!

And then a gradual movement towards Mission Grove Park. No orders or even suggestions given, and yet we all file to that central meeting place, put our arms around each other, grip tight, and then grip  _ tighter _ .

_ Some of us are not here. _

We leave space for them, space that has been emptied by time.  

“I…suppose I should say a few words to mark the occasion,” says one of us – tall, towards the front.

He says nothing more.

* * *

 

The grass is an eye piercing green and the wind blows with the usual heat of the desert but Carlos doesn’t notice. 

He doesn’t notice anything but that  _ everyone  _ is here.  _ Everyone _ is safe. Tears prickle at his eyes and strong arms come around him, he doesn’t know who it is but he leans into the embrace. He almost wants to apologize about the tears that he knows is staining the strangers shirt but there are no words.

He hears laughter and sobbing. It echoes in the desert heat. Everyone is breathing as one. 

Carlos is moved but it feels right, he feels like he belongs, everyone clutches at their neighbors and friends but something is off. For the first time, Carlos  _ looks _ . People are gathered around but there are spaces. There are spaces for the people who are not there. 

Panic starts to settle into his gut. He searches. He  _ must _ be here. The voice of Nightvale. The man who Carlos has only heard on the radio but gods know how many times he’s fallen asleep to that voice like a lullaby. His eyes are pulled into a direction but there is only space where Carlos  _ knows _ where he should be. He needs to make sure Cecil made it. 

He needs it like the air he breathes. 

Carlos does the unthinkable, he turns away from the group, he backs away from Mission Grove Park and he runs. Even though he’s never been to the radio station he knows  _ exactly  _ where it is. The beacon on top of the building is no longer blinking red. 

Tears slowly drip down his face, he must check. He  _ must _ see.  _ Cecil has to be safe _ . 

Before he even touches the door, it swings open. Everything stops in that second.

He’s never met Cecil but somehow he knows this is him. He just seems right. He’s tall and broad shouldered, his hair is a piercing white. His eyes are an expressive obsidian, thin purple outlines of tattoos wrap around his neck and come into the third eye on his forehead. 

He’s gorgeous. 

“Oh my! Carlos! I didn’t expect you to be here!” His voice is exactly what he needed to soothe the ache in his chest and quell the panic that started. 

He hastily rubs at his face with his lab coat, wanting to get rid of the evidence of his poor emotional control at the moment. “I...I don’t know why I’m here…”

Cecil smiles and time seems to stand still just for a little longer, “I’m glad you’re safe. Come! Let’s go back to the park.”

The visceral need to be with everyone come back once more, he doesn’t understand. He doesn’t want to. He turns and he runs. Cecil’s laughter follows him closely behind, they make it back. They are greeted with open arms. Cecil gravitates towards his spot and is promptly smothered by Old Woman Josie.

His laughter carries and no one says anything before they all join in. Even the people who were chanting join in with the merriment of being alive. At surviving this horrid day. 

All except Carlos. 

Carlos laughs but even then there are still tears in his eyes, there is sorrow at the loses, the never ending dialogue of what  _ could _ have happened in his head. He watches Cecil make his way through the crowd, even acknowledging Steve Carlsburg with a hand on his shoulder. He is last to be acknowledged but Carlos gets the brightest smile and not even a hint of hesitation when Cecil wraps him in his arms. 

They are safe. They are alive. Tomorrow will come. 


End file.
